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Ghazni, historically known as Ghaznayn or Ghazna, also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana, is a city in southeastern Afghanistan, serving as the capital city of Ghazni Province. It is within the jurisdiction of Ghazni District and has an estimated population of 205,965 people. Mawlawi Muhammad Nabi Hamzah is the current mayor of the city.
Ghazni is a thriving city with a number of factories, , business centers, banks, historical sites, public parks, hotels, restaurants, mosques, hospitals, universities, and places to play sports or just walk around. In 2015 there were 15,931 in the city. Many tourists visit the city for leisure and pleasure purposes.
Ghazni is strategically located along the Kabul–Kandahar Highway, which follows the paths that have served as the main roads between Kabul, Kandahar and Gardez for thousands of years. Situated on a plateau at around above sea level, the city has a land area of . It is about to the southwest of Kabul. The name Ghazni derives from the Persian word ganj, meaning "treasure."
Ghazni Citadel, the Ghazni Minarets, the Palace of Sultan Mas'ud III, and several other cultural heritage sites have brought travelers and archeologists to the city for centuries. During the pre-Islamic period, the area was inhabited by various tribes who practiced different religions including Buddhism, Hinduism and Zoroastrianism.Gnoli, Zoroaster's Time and Homeland, pp. 26–39 Arab Muslims introduced Islam to Ghazni in the 7th century. The Saffarid dynasty made it the official religion in the 9th century. Sabuktigin turned Ghazni into the capital of the Ghaznavids in the 10th century. The city was destroyed by one of the Ghurid dynasty rulers but later rebuilt. It fell to several regional powers, including the Timurids and the Delhi Sultanate until it became part of the Hotak dynasty, which was followed by the Durrani Empire or modern Afghanistan. During the First Anglo-Afghan War in the 19th century, the fortifications of Ghazni were partially demolished by British Indian forces.
"The country of Jāguda is more than seven thousand li in circuit, and its capital city, named Hexina (Ghazni), is over thirty li in circuit; but the capital is sometimes located in the city of Hesaluo (Guzar), which is also over thirty li in circuit, both cities being strongly fortified in invulnerable positions. The mountains and valleys are rich in natural resources, and the cultivated farmlands, divided by ridges, are high and dry. Crops are sown in proper seasons. Winter wheat is abundant, and vegetation is luxuriant with profuse flowers and fruits. The soil is good for growing aromatic turmeric, and it produces the hingu herb ( Asafoetida), which grows in the Rama-Indu Valley. In the city of Hesaluo there are gushing springs, the water of which flows to all sides, and the people make use of it for irrigation. The climate is severely cold with much frost and snow." - Xuanzang, 644 CE
In 683, Arab armies brought Islam to the region. From 680 to 870, the Zunbils were present in the area, and at times had their capital in Ghazni. Yaqub Saffari from Zaranj conquered the Zunbils in the late 9th century. The Saffarid dynasty reduced the formerly Lawik dynasty to tributary status. In 962, the Turkic peoples slave commander of the Samanid Empire, Alp-Tegin, attacked the city and besieged the Citadel of Ghazni for four months, wresting the city from Abu Bakr Lawik. Around 965, Abu Bakr Lawik recaptured Ghazni from Alp-Tegin's son, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim, forcing him to flee to Bukhara. However, this was not to last long because Abu Ishaq Ibrahim shortly returned to the town with Samanid aid, and took control of the town once again. For nearly two hundred years (977–1163), the city was the dazzling capital of the Ghaznavids, which encompassed much of what is today Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Eastern Iran and Rajasthan. The Ghaznavids took Islam to Hindustan and returned with fabulous riches looted from Hindu temples. Although the city was sacked in 1151 by the Ghurids Ala'uddin, it became their secondary capital in 1173, and subsequently flourished once again. Between 1215 and 1221, Ghazni was ruled by the Khwarezmid Empire, during which time it was destroyed by Genghis Khan's son Ögedei Khan.
In the first decades of the 11th century, Ghazni was the most important center of Persian literature. This was the result of the cultural policy of Sultan Mahmud (reigned 998–1030), who assembled a circle of scholars, philosophers, and poets around his throne in support of his claim to royal status in Iran.
The noted Morocco traveler, Ibn Battuta, visiting Ghazni in 1333, wrote:
Tamerlanes's grandson, Pir Muhammad bin Djinhangir, became the governor of Ghazni (along with Kabul and Kandahar) in 1401. Babur conquered the region in 1504 and personally thought that Ghazni was "a mean place" and pondered why any of the princes of the region would make it their seat of government. Ghazni stayed under Mughal Empire control until 1738 when Persian ruler Nader Shah invaded the area. After Nader Shah's death, Ghazni became part of the Durrani Empire. Ghazni is famous for its Ghazni Minarets built on a stellar plan. They date from the middle of the twelfth century and are the surviving elements of the mosque of Bahramshah. Their sides are decorated with intricate geometric patterns. Some of the upper sections of the minarets have been damaged or destroyed. The most important mausoleum located in Ghazni is that of Sultan Mahmud. Others include the tombs of poets and scientists, such as the tomb of Al Biruni. The only ruins in Old Ghazni retaining a semblance of architectural form are two towers, about high and apart. According to inscriptions, the towers were constructed by Sultan Mahmud and his son. For more than eight centuries the “Towers of Victory” monuments to Afghanistan's greatest empire have survived wars and invasions, the two toffee-colored minarets, adorned with terra-cotta tiles were raised in the early 12th century as monuments to the victories of the Afghan armies that built the empire. By the time the Ghurids had finalized the Ghaznavid removal from Ghazni, the city was a cultural center of the eastern Islamic world.C.E. Bosworth, The Later Ghaznavids, (Columbia University Press, 1977), 115.
The Buddhist site at Ghazni is known as Tapa-e Sardar and consists of a stupa on a hilltop, surrounded by a row of smaller stupas.Trudy Ring, Robert M. Salkin, Sharon La Boda (1996) International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania v.5, P. 279-282. Taylor & Francis, Nearby, an long Parinirvana (reclining) Buddha was excavated between the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is believed to have been built in the 8th century CE as part of a monastery complex.A note on the Parinirvana Buddha at Tapa-e Sardar M. Taddei (1974) South Asian archaeology 1973: papers from the second International Conference of the Association for the Promotion of South Asian Archaeology in Western Europe, Brill Archive, In the 1980s, a mud brick shelter was created to protect the sculpture, but the wood supports were stolen for firewood and the shelter partially collapsed. In 2001, the Taliban blew the Buddha up, believing it to be idolatrous.
During the First Anglo-Afghan War, the fortified city was partially destroyed by British forces on 23 July 1839 in the Battle of Ghazni. The Civil war in Afghanistan and the continued conflict between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance during the 1990s put the relics of Ghazni in jeopardy. Ghazni's strategic position, both economically and militarily, assured its revival, albeit without its dazzling former grandeur. Through the centuries the city has figured prominently as the all-important key to the possession of Kabul.
After the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the United States armed forces built a base in Ghazni. They were involved in rebuilding projects and protecting the local population against Taliban insurgents. In the meantime, they also trained the Afghan Local Police Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army. In 2010, the United States established the Lincoln Learning Center in Ghazni. The Lincoln learning centers in Afghanistan served as programming platforms offering English language classes, library facilities, programming venues, Internet connectivity, educational and other counseling services. A goal of the program was to reach at least 4,000 Afghan citizens per month per location.
In 2013, ISESCO declared Ghazni the year's Islamic capital of culture. In 2018, the city was attacked by Taliban forces during the August 10 Ghazni offensive. Dozens of airstrikes were carried out in support of Afghan police and government forces and hundreds of Afghan soldiers, police, and Taliban insurgents were killed as well as dozens of civilians. In addition to the destruction and human suffering caused by the fighting, the Taliban also set fire to many buildings in the city.
On 18 May 2020, a suicide Humvee bomber affiliated with the Taliban killed nine Afghan intelligence personnel and injured 40 others at the National Directorate of Security unit in Ghazni. On 12 August 2021, the city was invaded by Taliban forces as part of their 2021 offensive. It became the tenth provincial capital to be captured by them.
Ghazni is a major trading and transit hub. Agriculture is the dominant land use at 28%. The city has four districts ( nahiya) and covers a land area of . In terms of built-up land area, vacant plots (33%) slightly outweigh residential area (31%). Districts 3 and 4 also have large institutional areas.
The population of Ghazni is multi-ethnic, which was estimated decades ago at around 50% being Tajiks, 25% Hazaras, and 25% Pashtuns.
In April 2012, the governor of Ghazni laid the foundation stone of the Ghazni Airport. The work began later that year and was supervised by the managing director of the Ghazni province Engineer Ahmad Wali Tawakuli.
The city is next to Afghanistan's main highway that runs between Kabul and Kandahar in the south. Other roads from Ghazni lead east to Gardez in neighboring Paktia Province and northwest to Hazarajat. Many tourists visit the city for leisure and pleasure purposes.
The city is also home to Ghazni University. There are a number of other universities in the city.
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